How to Start a Photography Business

Lesson 5 of 87

The Lin & Jirsa Journey

How to Start a Photography Business

Lesson 5 of 87

The Lin & Jirsa Journey

Lesson Info

The Lin & Jirsa Journey

This is the only time that I wanna talk through our journey, because I wanna set you guys up for what your potential journey can be. So, The Lin and Jirsa Journey. So, so. My partners, family first, partners second. Justin, he's our CEO. Justin's been my best friend since I was 19 years old. Chris is his little brother. We became family a long, long time ago, and we all became CPAs, and we all left Ernst &amp; Young to start up a business, a couple different ones, actually. In 2006, we were in Ernst &amp; Young audit. 2008, we'd completed our CPAs. And I did my first engagement shoot with my dad and my mom. (laughs) That's disturbing. Nobody should ever have to take those photographs. (audience quietly laughs) Makin' out, there. Ah, these are just a random family that I thought was cute. I had my camera, and I was like, "Oh, that's like a postcard." They never got the photograph. They didn't even know, I probably, that's really creepy actually. (audience member laughs) That's super cre...

epy. Just a random family with their kid. Okay, so, I got a camera, and I was like, "I'm takin' pictures. "This is kinda fun." In February, Chris got his helicopter shoot with a rebel. And then, this is the funny part, we were hired by the Compton Unified School District to go up into a helicopter to take pictures of the city. And then after I got these pictures, and Chris on the day that he was going out the door, he's like, "I don't even know how to use this thing." I'm like, "Just, put in green and shoot raw. "It's fine." Green is auto. Put it in green, shoot raw. Okay, so he goes up in the camera, up in the-- Let me start from a little bit of the beginning here. The Compton Unified School District called us, 'cause we did another gig for them. And they're on the phone with me, and they go, "The website that you guys are helping us to consult with, "do you guys do photography?" And we were starting up our own thing on the side, and I was budgeting $2 per meal for food, so I was like, "Absolutely, we do photography! "Hold on one second, "let me transfer you to the photography division." In my apartment, I put my phone, my iPhone, on hold, go, "Justin, you're in the photographer division. "Sell them on photography. We need money." Justin sells them on photography, and he's like, "Oh yeah, I have the perfect photographer, Chris." So, there's a little bit of fake it till you make it at the beginning of this. Chris goes, and this is helicopter shoot. I tell Chris, "Look, I'm good with design, "I'm good with that kind of stuff. "I can handle that. I can handle everything, just go up and take the pictures. "Put it in raw." He comes back with, like, 1,500 photographs. Do you know what it's like to be in an airplane, like in a helicopter over a city with a kit lens and a rebel, and he has 1,500 pictures. Can you imagine how they looked? Identical. It's 1,500 of the exact same shoots. And so I call up the Compton Unified School, and I'm like, "What did you guys wanna do with this?" And they go, "Oh, well, we wanted to create this poster "with the picture of a school and the different monuments "of Gardena, and that kind of stuff, "and wanna have a teacher teaching a classroom." "Well, why did we go up in a helicopter?" "Oh, that's gonna be one of the smaller pictures "that we're gonna use." "Well, okay, we need to come back down "and shoot the other things, right?" They're like, "Yeah." I'm like, "Okay, we'll put together a proposal for that." So we put together another proposal and did that. And this was the final campaign that came out of both of these. Is the imagery great? No. They didn't pay a lot either. It wasn't too expensive. It was within their budget. We provided a service that they wanted. They got something they liked. It went up onto this specific one. If you were in Compton or Gardena, about nine years ago, you will have seen it on buses and billboards. A picture off a rebel on billboards. That should clue you into something about this whole megapixel, and technology, and marketing ploys that are being used. (laughs) In 2008, I go to WPPI and then I send Chris, says right here, "Hey dude, here's some of the pics "that I took." Chris responds, "Wow, Pye, your skills are gettin' crazy." He was serious. (audience laughing) Just to give you an idea. These were the images that I sent him in that email. The statue, some dude fishin' out money from a fountain, some dude I'm just creepin' on. Ah, here's an attempt at some weird engagement photo that really is framed poorly. Yeah, they're havin' a good-- Oh, someone else's child. I don't know who that is. (audience laughing) That was my skills were gettin' crazy. Alright, (laughs) my mom joins the Red Hat Society and I'm playin' with flash, so I'm like, "Let me just test this thing out." This is my mom on the right side. She's adorable. This is her friend on the left side in the Red Hat Society. It's some, don't worry about it. 2008, we shot 19 weddings our very first year. We'll talk about setting up price points and making sure that you're delivering a product that's good based on the price points that you're at. If you always deliver something that's better what they expect, you're good. And 2008, SLR Lounge was born roughly. That was one of our early logos. 2009, we shot 57 weddings. We actually started learning some stuff. We were getting better. This was in New York. 2009, our first hire. This is my apartment. This is where I used to edit. Right there. And he worked right next to me. Then we started developing a style, in 2010. It started becoming our thing. It took us a good year, year and a half to start developing a signature style, and look it'll take time. Some of you guys will be really quick. You'll know what you want. I didn't know anything about photography, so it took me time. 2011, we moved into a new studio. And we had one little front room section, here, that was presentable in a whole bunch of not presentable space. It was all warehouses that we worked inside of. It was full start-up. This was our team in 2011. We shot 119 weddings. Yes, the apartment. So, can you imagine your employee sitting right here, you're sitting right here, your two partners? And we're booking $3,000, $4,000 weddings, and nobody knows. Were not meeting them there. Okay, so this is the warehouse. We don't take clients back there, but we, all of our desks and everything are set up back there. This is Emily, one of our first employees, who is now one of our lead shooters. Me passed out. Oh yeah, this is that one time where I took my shirt off and took a picture with Chris. And then the team photoshopped on all the viking stuff. This is the, if you were working in a photography studio, it happens. Everybody knows Photoshop. You take a picture, you know what's gonna happen. (chuckles) Our studio manager, Joe our very first employee, this guy is ridiculous. He was our studio manager up until 2012. He is that goofy and that weird, and he managed our studio, but people liked him. In 2012, we shot 153 weddings. We started getting serious about SLR Lounge and the education. We built out a room for that. I got serious about it from the top, from the center up, and then I really stayed unserious about from the waste down. That's just the way I roll. In 2013, we did 191 weddings. I also got my Prius stuck in the sand. Prii are not designed to go in the sand. (audience laughing) In 2014, I shot my first commercial shoot for a Nissan. We did 281 weddings. 300 weddings in 2016. Towards the end we did 325. Anywhere between here, between 325 to 375, so we say, usually, 350. We bought our building. 10,000 square feet, full shooting space, cyc wall, everything, has what we want. It's our dream location. And in 2017, 350 plus, 50 team members. 2018, we'll probably do somewhere around 400. This is kind of our sweet spot, that 350 mark we really like a lot. It keeps us at a place where we can deliver good quality without having to expand the team so large that it becomes inefficient. So, it's a nice sweet spot for us. So, 10 short years later, apartment two, our own building. This is one of my favorite quotes. Most people overestimate what they can do in one year, and they underestimate what they can do in 10. It's so powerful. Because, every one of you are in this place, if you choose to go down this road where your first couple years are gonna be difficult. Just stick with it. Stick with it and watch it progress. Just don't walk away because of something that you hear. If this is what you want to do. Jump two feet in and go. A brief visual history, oh yes, fooled Justin and Yvette to go on an engagement session. This is me and Chris shooting. Ah, so beautiful. Look at the cohesive black and white to this. It looks great. These are terrible. These are some of our very first. This was our second engagement shoot. Ah yeah, you wanna sepia tone one, and then some fine art ones with textures over them? We're probably one of the reasons that photographers aren't allowed in the Getty Museum anymore, because of the climbing that was done. These are another friends that we roped into going with us. Yeah, let me stare at you through this eyepiece. And then, again, with the weird toning. Oh yeah, and birds. I had birds in my portfolio when we booked $3,000 weddings. What does that tell you about, do your-- Does it need to be perfect? No. No. Justin and I argue to this day about who took this photograph. I took it. I took it. Oh yeah, we had this post production manual. I'm like, "Hey, do you want fine art post production?" We would give this out to clients. They could order additional post production. Can you guess how many people took us up on that? (audience laughing) Okay, my high school art teacher said, "You should quit. You just aren't good enough." this is true. And this isn't a bash. I know he did it out of love. But that was actually something that he said to me when it was a class on drawing. This is today. I had the chance to go all over the world, document, educate, shoot for celebrity couples, go to crazy places. This out in Cancun. This is actually two of our friends. They're SLR Lounge premium members. And they hired us to shoot their wedding. It was really fun. So we took this extra day and went and found ridiculous things to take pictures of. This is out in Hawaii, Kauai. This is in Mordor, Lord of the Rings. (audience member laughing) Surprised you guys haven't been there. This is actually in Malibu. Dubai, Chris just got back from Dubai shooting a couple out there. We started a new business, Line &amp; Roots for maternity, newborn, family, which will be spinning up over the next couple of years. So, we now do maternity. We now do family. We added newborns. What's cuter than a newborn next to a fuzzy teddy bear? That's adorable. We also now do commercial. So we're doing a commercial cinema arm as well, where we're breaking into working with more companies like Toyota and Nissan, local Orangetheory Fitness, that kind of stuff. American gym boxing. So, you should quit. You just aren't good enough. You're gonna hear it. You're gonna hear the doubts from everybody around you. This is where 10 years can take you. Imagine 20. Imagine 30. I feel like we're just now hitting our stride and we're here. Tune them out, if it's possible. And understand this, they love you, so they speak out of fear. Your family, your friends, my high school art teacher. They want the best for you. That's why they say these things. They speak out of their own fears, out of their own history, out of their own attempts and failures. That's what you're hearing when you hear that kind of stuff. So, stop talking. This is a big thing. If you read entrepreneurial books, they'll encourage you, that if you're writing a book, if you are starting a business, if you're doing anything that's at all risky, don't talk about it. Because one of the biggest reasons that things never get off the ground is because you talk about it. Somebody convinces you to stop and so you do. So, stop talking, let your actions speak for themselves. Smile, walk away, double down. Once you have your direction you must muster the courage to lose sight of the shore. I don't know if you guys ever heard this quote by Andre Gide, but it's one of my favorite quotes, in terms of, if you imagine yourself as a captain of a ship, to get to some other land that you're going to, you have to have the courage to just look out to this open sea that's rough with waters and to actually go far enough that you lose sight of your own shore. That has to be a terrifying feeling. It is, it should be. It's gonna be less terrifying though as we go through the course, and we help to define out our strategy, and how we're gonna do it.

Class Description

The content and opinions expressed in this course are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem

Short on time? This class is available HERE as a Fast Class, exclusively for Creator Pass subscribers.

AFTER THIS CLASS YOU’LL BE ABLE TO:

Start a photography business

Develop the ideal business structure and business plan

Research competitors and the market in your area

Build a short-term and long-term strategy

Create a marketing plan and marketing materials on a budget

Confidently conduct an in-person or phone sales session

Manage small business tasks from accounting to strategy

ABOUT PYE'S CLASS:

Professional photographers aren't just people with a knack for photography and a good camera -- because launching a small business on nothing but passion is a sure-fire way to fail spectacularly. Layer business savvy, marketing know-how, professional grit and more onto your existing passion and learn how to start a photography business. Take your hobby, vision, and creativity and build a career -- whether you are looking to run a full-time business or just a side gig.

Led by a photographer that's also a certified public accountant, Pye Jirsa, the class teaches the ins and outs of launching a photography business from the ground up. Along with three full days of instruction, Pye shares a 12-week plan to get your business up and running, a business expense calculator and more inside the class workbook. Understand what gear and skills you need before you launch and how to build a portfolio by photographing family members or organizing a stylized shoot.

Stop feeling overwhelmed by the monumental task and tackle one task a day in a 12-week plan. Brainstorm names for your business and learn the different types of business licenses available. Secure a domain name and build a website that's easily searchable. Develop a marketing plan with little investment. Master in-person sales and book your first session.

Whether you want to venture out in portrait photography, commercial work or any other client-based type of photography, learn the "business" in photography business with Pye Jirsa.

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR:

Pye Jirsa is a wedding photographer with Lin & Jirsa photography -- but besides running a successful photography business, he also has a background in accounting, creating the perfect blend for teaching the ins and outs of running a photography business. Along with working as a photographer and educator, Pye is also one of the founders of SLR Lounge, an online resource for photographers.

Learn from a founder of a photography business that photographs more than 300 weddings a year. Pye's Los Angeles and Orange County wedding photography business has been named among the top 100 wedding photographers by Brandsmash.

There are easier ways to make a living, Pye says, and the expectation that photography is easy money is setting yourself up for failure. Find out what the average studio spends on costs and start calculating rough numbers using an easy spreadsheet included in the class workbook.

The reality of working as a photographer, Pye says, is that 10 percent of your time will be spent taking pictures -- and 90 percent will be running the business. Pye redefines the passion that you need for business.

Can your clients really tell the difference between an f/1.2 and an f/2.8 lens? Between a good camera and a high-end camera? No -- which means you shouldn't be wasting money on gear that you think that you need. Instead, re-focus on what clients easily notice.

Getting a photography business off the ground can be done in as little as 12 weeks. In this lesson, Pye shares the roadmap for a 12-week launch, using the included class workbook to build your plan of attack.

Develop a focus to make the task of launching a business less monumental -- and launch a business that's better poised to compete. In this lesson, learn the importance of developing a focus then narrow down the focus of your business.

What are your competitors doing? Professional photographers shouldn't burn up all their time comparing businesses, but researching competitors is an important part of the process. Learn who's really your competitor, develop a research strategy, and understand what to look for.

Analyze your business environment by looking at your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats -- or S.W.O.T. Adapt this common business practice to photography and learn how to apply the analysis to your own business launch.

Developing your business values, vision, and mission creates a foundation that helps your strategy and goals fall into place. Whether you work alone or with a team, pinpoint your values, vision, and mission.

Business owners that work from home often fall into the trap of neglecting to set a schedule. Learn how to effectively manage your time as a business owner when you don't have a time clock to punch, from setting hours and goals to tools to help you track your time.

What's the difference between luxury and consumer, besides just price? In this lesson, Pye walks through the different qualities that tend to be associated with luxury brands compared to consumer goods -- and how that relates to photography.

Work through the basic business tasks you'll need to tackle, from gear to business management software. Tackle registering your business name (including checking for an available domain name) and opening a business bank account. Learn why an LLC is often best for protecting personal assets, and the different types, such as a sole proprietor.

Design a pricing structure that suits your business and your goals. Learn what to do -- and what not to do -- when building your photography packages. Stop upselling and create a package that you -- and your clients -- will love from the start.

How do you create a marketing plan when you have no marketing budget? Build a plan to market your business on a budget, including network marketing and social media. Then, adapt your marketing plan as your business grows.

Directory listings and online classifieds are a simple, inexpensive way to get your name out there when you are getting started. Master some best practices for using online classifieds and similar options.

Most brides use Pinterest more than any other platform to engage with vendors -- and the platform is important to other genres like family photography and newborn portraits too. Tackle Pinterest and learn to make your clients work for you by adding a simple plug-in to your site.

Pye cautions against relying on Facebook -- or any single source -- to build your business. But, Facebook is still an important part of your social media marketing. Learn Facebook marketing best practices.

Just how viable is that keyword idea? In this lesson, learn how to determine if a keyword is good or not --and gain new ideas -- using the free Google Keyword Planner tool as well as options like Moz and SEM Rush.

Armed with your keyword ideas, determine what options should be your main focus and what should be a niche. Determine the main search goal, then build smaller niche goals for creating a searchable website.

Build a strategy from those keywords and start building website content to bring potential clients in through search. Learn where to plug in those search terms and how to organize your web content using keywords.

Once you have your focus and keywords, it's time to start building your website content. Learn how to write better website content, where to place those keywords, and best practices for building content that will get noticed by Google.

What about links that originate off your website? Backlink building helps boost your website in the search results by building authority. Learn the basics for building authority by getting links on other websites.

By identifying the client's wishes early in the process, you can create the best pitch tailored to that individual. In this lesson, Pye shares the system he uses to get to know what a client is looking for.

Word choice matters in sales. In the final lesson of the course, learn what words to avoid and what to use instead.

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Reviews

Angela Sanchez

This class has been an eye opener for me; a point of change in my vision as photographer. Pye is and AMAZING, INSPIRING, GENEROUS instructor, with an, authentic desire to help people and to share with them the best of his knowledge. I will not have enough words to say thanks to Pye Jirsa, as a teacher and as a human being, and thanks to Creative Live who allows us to benefit from the experience of such a knowledgeable, educated, well-versed photographer and instructor. 1000% recommended!

Yenith LianTy

Been following this guy forever. Pye Jirsa may be well known in the wedding & portrait photography world and if there is something that this guy knows it is how to create a business, a sustainable one. The workbook he provided is comprehensive, and I honestly wish I had this when I first started out as a photographer! I love that he talks about his failures, keeping it real and honest for anyone starting out. He is definitely one of the best instructors around, super humble, down to earth and with a sense of humor to boot. The course is worth it! THE WORKBOOK is AMAZING! SUPER DETAILED!

Tai Hsin

I saw the live broadcast and it was amazing. Pye is one of the best instructors and inspirational photographers.. there are two type of ppl.. one who has the knowledge and doesn’t know to teach another who has the knowledge and knows how to get it through....
I still didn’t purchase this as I am saving for my daughters entrance fee for collage... :)
Anyways he’s one of the best instructors and a good friend.... very humble and always cracks jokes....
Keep inspiring and keep teaching.... my blessings are always with you pye.